WinStar and Airdrie Partner to Buy Mons Venus

Daughter of Maria's Mon is the dam of multiple graded stakes winner Caracortado.

One day after Caracortado captured the Daytona Stakes (gr. IIIT) at Santa Anita Park against some of the best sprinters in the country, his dam, Mons Venus, commanded $250,000 from Kenny Troutt’s WinStar Farm and Brereton Jones’ Airdrie Stud at the Keeneland January horses of all ages sale Jan. 9.

“She’s a very nice, young mare and she’s got a hot horse in Caracortado,” said WinStar’s Elliott Walden of the unraced 11-year-old daughter of Maria's Mon, who was consigned by VanMeter Sales, agent as Hip No. 61.

Bred in Ontario by Ormonde Farm, Mons Venus was sold in foal to Harlan's Holiday, who stands at WinStar. “Obviously that attracted us to her as well,” said Walden. “The cross works well with Harlan’s Holiday because Caracortado is by a son of Storm Cat. We felt like ($250,000) was kind of the range (we would end up paying).”

Bred and trained by Michael Machowsky, Caracortado is owned by Steve Altman's AJL Productions, Don Blahut's Blahut Racing, and Machowsky's Lo Hi Racing. The 5-year-old gelding by Cat Dreams scored additional victories in the 2010 Robert B. Lewis Stakes (gr. II) and the 2011 Del Mar Mile Handicap (gr. IIT). Caracortado, who has also been grade I-placed three times, holds an overall record of 9-2-3 from 19 starts, for earnings of $864,105.

Walden said while Caracortado’s most recent score added some extra incentive to purchase Mons Venus, he had already decided he wanted her regardless of the outcome of the race.

“Caracortado has already done what he’s supposed to do…(Mons Venus) was one of the mares in the sale we felt like was at the top end of the market, so we were excited to get her,” he said.

Out of the Key to the Mint mare Bid to the Mint, Mons Venus is a half sister to stakes winner Jaded Pleasure (by Jade Hunter). Her only other offspring is an unraced 3-year-old Southern Image filly named My Southern Diva. Plans call for Mons Venus to be bred back to grade I winner Haynesfield, who is standing his first season at Airdrie Stud near Versailles, Ky.